The Yomiuri Giants brought in legend Shigeo Nagashima and a host of other Kyojin luminaries to help celebrate the team's 2012 Central League championship on Opening Night, and they weren't about to let the Hiroshima Carp spoil their party.
Ryota Wakiya marked his return after a one-year absence with a go-ahead two-run single in the seventh, and the Giants held on to edge the Carp 4-3 in a back-and-forth affair in front of a crowd of 44,980 on Friday at Tokyo Dome.
"This is a great feeling to get the game-winning hit on Opening Day after being out for so long," Wakiya said. "It seemed as if I was gone forever."